Biggles au Pôle Sud - 1 (Artima comic)/plot
The adaptation is fairly faithful to the original but it is interesting to note here the comic adapter's art. This story was split into two parts each comprising 63 pages. It appears to have been a case where one part was not enough and two parts a little too much. As usual, sections of the original which comprised mainly conversation and description had to be abbreviated or omitted. However, the artist also embellished and expanded events and incidents where these made good picture subjects. The section headings below do not occur in the comic strip. The commentary here is divided into sections and use, where practical, the chapter titles in the original text to make comparison easier. The chapter numbers in brackets refer to those in the original book. For convenience and continuity, this commentary covers both part 1 and part 2 of the comic story. Aftermath of War (Chapter I and II) The Air Police crew do complain about boredom but not as much as in the original as the speech bubbles would have become boring. Raymond comes in and takes them to his office to give them their mission briefing. Muller's story is depicted but highly abbreviated. His name is not given. He is shown as shot, but again we are not told that it is Thom who has done it, nor are we told that his captain had offered the crew to remain onboard to go and get the gold and proceed to Chile and that five men, including Muller didn't want to go and were shot. Muller here does not survive the shooting to tell his story in a hospital. He tells his story at British GHQ after being shot and dies there. The entire segment where Raymond discusses islands is highly abbreviated--they wouldn't be good subjects for pictures. So there is no mention of Swain or other islands and the interesting history, only a brief statement that there are many islands whose existence is doubtful in the Indian Ocean. To Cape Town (not in original) There are pictures of them checking out their Tarpon aircraft, only here they are single engine floatplanes, not flyingg boats. The original text doesn't say much about their transit stop at Cape Town. Here it is embellished with 8 drawings. While technicians refuel and service their aircraft, Biggles and co. take a break in the bar where Bertie proposes a toast to the King! There's also a picture of Biggles shaking hands and thanking the mechanic for servicing their planes. Von Schonbeck Strikes First (Chapter III) The arrival and settling down in Kerguelen is treated in much greater detail than in the original text. The aircraft are marshalled in by crew from the Sterne. The Sterne's captain gives them a tour of the facilities, showing them the munition and fuel stores, the bunks and the radio installation. There's also several pictures of them dining on board the sloop. The sinking of the Sterne and the events following are faithful to the original, with the speech bubbles matching the original dialogue closely. Over dinner, the same discussion takes place, with Biggles asserting that oil is to a submarine what a scent is to a fox. Biggles Looks Around (Chapter IV) The next morning's events begin similarly with a discussion about the inadvisability of using the radio to contact HQ. Looking around, they do find a wrecked boat but the five skeletons are not depicted. Up on a promontory, they spot the whaler. Here it is Bertie and not Biggles who says it is curious that its trail of oil indicates that it started somewhere at or near Kerguelen. Back at base, Algy reports hearing coded signals. They discuss the possible destination of the whaler. Ginger indicates an island to the southeast although Corbie Island is not mentioned here yet. The Whaler (Chapter V) Biggles and Ginger fly out to take a closer look at the whaler. The drawing depicts a much larger vessel than that drawn in the original. Here it looks more like a whaling factory ship. All the important details are faithfully depicted. Most of the dialogue is word for word the same as in the original. They follow the trail of oil back to what they discover is von Schonbeck's secret u-boat base on Kerguelen. Only, here their aircraft is not rocked in mid-air by an explosion triggered by a pig stepping onto a booby-trap. They only get thrown by the explosion after landing and coming ashore. Tragedy Ashore (Chapter VI) The exploration of the u-boat base takes place along the same lines--Biggles has to shoot at booby-traps and they have several narrow escapes. Biggles also draws deductions from the level of oil in the oil tank. All this is told in detail over more than 9 pages. They then discover the bodies of the dead Norwegian sailors, including Sven Honritzen, whom Biggles is able to identify from letters in his pocket. They bury the bodies under rocks and then return to their own base. Ditched (Chapter VII) Biggles decides to locate the U-517 at Corbie Island. Biggles and Ginger fly there, sight first the whaler among ice bergs and then the submarine, They attack with depth charges but also take damage from anti-aircraft fire. Ginger attempts to repair the fuel tanks which have been holed and then unsuccessfully tries to call Algy because their radio has been destroyed. They ditch near an iceberg and get ashore in the midst of a fog. All this is covered faithfully and in detail over 11 pages, and again, the speech bubbles accurately mirror the original dialogue almost word for word. Algy Takes a Hand (Chapter VIII) This next section conludes Part 1 and follows the key events in Chapter VIII closely. Despite Bertie's impatience, Algy decides to wait, citing the need to follow Biggles' instructions precisely. They are then grounded by fog and have to wait until next morning. Algy has the near miss with an iceberg just like in the original and they find the wrecked Tarpon. Here, the same incongruity about the polar bears is repeated (it's just too much fun to let go of). They conclude there is nothing more they can do. What Happened on the Ice (part of Chapter IX) This section is depicted faithfully. All the essential details are drawn. Biggles and Ginger are found by the whaler. Thom questions them and then hits Biggles hard. They are brought on board the ship. Algy Carries On (Chapter X) The action now cuts over to Algy and covers his finding of the five Norwegians including Axel. They tell him how the submarine has taken over their whaler, leaving them stranded on the iceberg. The Norwegians are taken to the Kerguelen base where they discuss future plans. The discussion here is shorter than in the original. There is no mention, for example, that Axel is quite familiar with the layout of Corbie island. Here, the Norwegians merely offer to come along and help when Algy says he is going there. Cut and Thrust (part of Chapter IX and Chapter XI) The whaler arrives at Corbie Island and Biggles and Ginger are taken to see von Schonbeck. The questions and answers are a lot briefer but follow the same lines and the interview ends with von Schonbeck promising to send them some food. He gives them time to think about his demands and tells them he will see them again. The action continues with the events in Chapter XI of the original text. The whaler is camouflaged. Algy and Bertie fly over and fail to spot them. The submarine crew goes off with spades and come back with crates of gold. The only difference is that here the crates are loaded on board immediately instead of being left on the rocks nearby. Nonetheless, Biggles concludes that they intend to depart the next day, so he says he will try to get some sleep. In the morning Biggles is taken to see von Schonbeck again and this second interview follows the same lines as in the original text and the German firing squad gets ready to shoot him. Ginger Starts Something (Chapter XII) Ginger's actions on the whaler are described accurately. He is released by a Norwegian, he goes on deck, loads the harppon gun and fires it, scattering the firing squad. The Norwegians on the whaler attack the German prize crew. From the interior of the island, Axel's team opens fire on the Germans while the Tarpon flies in to bomb the submarine but misses. The only difference here is that Bertie is with Axel's shore party while Algy flies the aircraft--the opposite of what happened in the original. Everybody regroups on board the whaler. There is no accounting of casualties and it is not mentioned that Thom has been killed. There is no discussion of what to do with the German prisoners. The conversation between Biggles and the Norwegians is more detailed than in the original. Here, Biggles suggests that Axel take the whaler to the Kerguelen base, repair the damage and then sail for Norway. Axel remarks that his bunkers are full of heavy fuel oil. Another Norwegian says this would be worth a lot of money. Biggles adds that its sale would repay the loss of their catch. To which Axel responds that they would give a large part of it to the widows of their dead shipmates. Von Schonbeck Tries Again (Chapter XIII) There's more embellishment in this next section. Biggles and co. fly back to their base. They have time to take a shower but are then grounded by bad weather. They spend the time playing bridge! When the weather improves, the plot goes back to following the original text where Biggles and Ginger take off and fail to spot the submarine. The whaler hasn't turned up at the base either. Bertie's irish stew is depicted. Algy and Bertie take off to search for the whaler and find it. It's been heavily damaged and Alex tells the same backstory as in the original. Biggles decides to get the whaler to block the submarine in its cove and meanwhile attack it with depth charges. The Pace Quickens (Chapter XIV) This next section faithfully follows the original story without embellishment. Algy is landed near the whaler, while the rest attack the submarine with the Tarpon. Like in the book, since Biggles doesn't know the depth of the water in the cove, he sticks to near misses to damage rather than sink the submarine. The Tarpon is damaged and Biggles lands it at the top of a cliff. The u-boat is beached but then refloated off and heads for the exit. The whaler arrives in time to be sunk as a blockship to keep the submarine in. Algy and Bertie are sent in the repaired Tarpon to make a radio call up Raymond. There's no mention of ferrying two injured Norwegian sailors. The Clock That Ticked (Chapter XV) They wait till dawn, frustrated because they know Algy will be grounded by the mist. Here, the plot with embellished with a few scenes of Axel serving coffee and a meal. The whaling crews always carry provisions in their boats. With daylight, Biggles decides to advance on the submarine. Biggles and Ginger board the deserted submarine. The scene where Biggles breaks the trip wire is depicted. They bolt and the submarine blows up. Clean Up at Kerguelen (Chapters XVI, XVII and XVIII) From here, the plot, after sticking faithfully to the original for so long, the plot deviates dramatically. The end happens a lot more quickly, almost as if the artist realised he was rapidly running out of space. Algy and Bertie arrive in the Tarpon with Raymond's laconic and puzzling answer to "stand by". Meanwhile Biggles plans to go after von Schonbeck. Axel remarks that the submarine had a boat which was still on the bridge the day before but that morning appeared to be gone. He says that resolute sailors could make a long journey on a boat. Biggles surmises that von Schonbeck could have hidden the gold and then escape in the boat, with the intention of coming back with a ship to collect it (this thought process is still part of the original story). Biggles asks Axel to search the surroundings with his men for the submarine's boat. Meanwhile the airmen pile into the remaining Tarpon. They take off to search for von Schonbeck and discover him near Mount Ross (an actual place in Kerguelen, a detail which is absent in the original). Biggle does not drop a message to offer terms. The Germans immediately open fire with their machine guns. Biggles doesn't fight back. He merely remarks that von Schonbeck has managed to find the time to hide the gold. Suddenly (and without explanation) several aircraft appear and drop paratroops. There's Biggles nothing more for Biggles and co. to do so they return to the submarine base. Biggles is deep in thought, wondering where the gold has been hidden. He walks past the oil tank and notices the level of oil has risen. The gold is in there under the oil! The German sailors were not all killed. It appears several of them are captured by the paratroops but von Schonbeck has disappeared. Two days later, the prisoners are made to retrieve the boxes of gold from the oil tank. The last picture shows Biggles and co. celebrating on board an aircraft carrier. It is not clear if Raymond is there. Biggles tells Axel will be getting a brand new whaler. Category:Plot summaries (derivative works)